Targeted for Ubuntu 11.04 is he Linux 2.6.38 kernel, X.Org Server 1.10 (or 1.9 if xorg-server 1.10 is late or risky), Mesa 7.10, the needed version of libdrm for Mesa 7.10 compatibility, and GNOME 3.0. The Intel, Radeon, and Nouveau DDX drivers will be at their latest stable versions when freezing.

As we already said, this next Ubuntu release will also use R300g (the ATI Radeon Gallium3D driver for supporting GPUs up through the Radeon X1000 series) by default rather than the classic Mesa R300 driver. The R600 driver in use will continue to be the classic alternative for Ubuntu 11.04. There will also continue to be no Nouveau Gallium3D support provided by default in Ubuntu Natty.

The only other note that Bryce added is that they will begin stripping the less widely-used Mesa DRI drivers from the Ubuntu CD in order to save space. Ubuntu's Jockey can be used then for installing these less popular DRI drivers for those owners of such hardware. This will be good if Canonical begins dropping Linux support for this more obscure hardware, seeing as such hardware tends to not work (or be less friendly) with the Wayland Display Server, which they intend to support by default (with a xorg-server fall-back and X application compatibility mode) in less than one year's time.

Michael Larabel is the principal author of Phoronix.com and founded the site in 2004 with a focus on enriching the Linux hardware experience. Michael has written more than 10,000 articles covering the state of Linux hardware support, Linux performance, graphics drivers, and other topics. Michael is also the lead developer of the Phoronix Test Suite, Phoromatic, and OpenBenchmarking.org automated benchmarking software. He can be followed via Twitter or contacted via MichaelLarabel.com.

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